Photo: While the New York Rangers excelled as a team in the 2011-12 season, goaltender Henrik Lundqvist played a major role in the team's success this season (courtesy of

Robin Alam/Icon SMI)

The 2011-12 NHL season saw some tremendous goaltending performances with numerous players being worthy of a Vezina Trophy candidacy. There can be only three candidates, however, and it will be hard to argue against any of the following three netminders.

Photo: St. Louis Blues head coach Ken Hitchcock landed the job in November and could end up on the short list of candidates for the Jack Adams Award as NHL Coach of the Year (courtesy of

Scott Kane/Icon SMI)

Candidates abound for the Jack Adams Award early in the season, but the field is always pared as the the season progresses. This season, for example, Minnesota Wild head coach Mike Yeo looked to be a lock for the award until a mid-season collapse by the Wild took him out of the running. On the other hand, one of our three finalists didn’t even start the season behind a team’s bench, to give you an idea of how fickle this game can be.

Photo: Boston Bruins forward Patrice Bergeron is strong at both ends of the ice, but he is also the top face-off artist in the NHL (courtesy of

Will Schneekloth/Icon SMI)

To the new or casual hockey fan, the Frank J. Selke Trophy is an award given at the end of every NHL season to the forward who demonstrates the most skill in the defensive component of the game. The winner is selected by the Professional Hockey Writer's Association following the regular season. The 2011 winner of the trophy was Vancouver Canucks center, Ryan Kesler.

The 2011-12 NHL regular season has come and gone and most teams in the Northwest Division have been sent packing. With that in mind, now seems like as good a time as any to take a look at every team in the division and see how their seasons' broke down.